Final Stats

BETHLEHEM, Pa. â€"â€" A late rally to force a fifth set fell just short for the Navy volleyball team as the Mids dropped a four-set match (25-20, 25-21, 23-25, 25-23) to Lehigh Saturday afternoon in Bethlehem, Pa.

"I was very pleased with our offense," said Navy head coach Larry Bock. "Our first swing offense really got on track today. It obviously wasn't enough and that was disappointing, but there are positives we can pull from today."

Each of Navy's last 10 sets (two full matches and part of a third) and 14 of its last 18 sets (four full matches) have been decided by no more than five points, as have 33 of its 56 sets on the full season.

Lehigh (9-8, 2-1), which placed second in the Patriot League last season and was predicted to finish in second place again this year, turned a slim 12-10 lead in the first set into a 20-12 advantage. Navy (2-13, 0-2) rallied to close to within four points at 22-18, 23-19 and 24-20 before the Mountain Hawks notched the final point to win the opening frame.

Navy held a slim 16-13 lead in the second set before Lehigh tied the score at 18 on its way to taking a 23-19 lead. The Mids cut the deficit in half (23-21) before the Mountain Hawks tallied back-to-back points to claim the set.

The Mids were the team to open up a little lead midway through the third set. Navy jumped out to a 13-6 cushion only to see Lehigh tie the frame at 19-19. The teams played sideout volleyball over the next three points to give the Mids a 21-20 lead, then Navy scored on its serve to take a 22-21 lead. After a Lehigh kill, Rachel Fortner (So., Villa Hills, Ky.) notched a kill of her own to boost Navy back out to a two-point lead. The remaining points in the set were Lehigh kill, Fortner kill, Lehigh kill and Fortner kill, which sent the match into a fourth set.

Navy trailed by as many as three points in the frame before taking leads of 16-14 and 18-16. Lehigh tied the score at 18-18, then slowly built a 21-19 edge which soon became 23-20. A Lehigh attack error cut the margin down to two points, then Gaby Smith (Jr., Virginia Beach, Va.) produced back-to-back kills for the Mids to tie the score at 23. After a kill by the Mountain Hawks took them to match point, Smith was blocked to close out the contest.

Most of the statistics were very similar between the two teams. Navy held a slight edge in kills (58-56), with Lehigh holding small advantages in both hitting percentage (.292-.264), digs (54-53) and aces (8-7). However, the Mountain Hawks recorded eight team blocks while the Mids posted just one block.

"We are losing because we are getting outblocked," said Bock. "That obviously will continue to be a point of emphasis for us. But with our players starting to come back to full strength, we at least can now start to zero in on the few areas that we are deficient in."

Much of Navy's offense came from the wings. Outside and opposite hitters Fortner posted 14 kills, hit .367 and snared 9 digs, Smith notched 12 kills and a .300 attack percentage to go along with 14 digs and Maggie Phillips (So., Leesburg, Va.) added 14 kills and a .365 hitting percentage.

Each of those three players have missed significant time this season due to injuries.

"The best part of today is that Rachel and Gaby played a very physical match," said Bock. "And Maggie had a great weekend (16 kills, 18 digs and 3 blocks Friday at Bucknell) despite having an injured shoulder that we know has her in discomfort. She took a gazillion swings this weekend but really toughed it out.

"We are slowly getting everyone back, so we have to look at this as a process. We didn't get over the hill today, but if we can hit as we did today we will get there and soon."

Navy will play host to Colgate in a 6 p.m. match on Friday, Oct. 2 in the Wesley A. Brown Field House.